Can you build a home for $15k? And buy land too!? Yes! Yes you can. But you’re going to have to get very creative in how you do things. Piggybacking on a group member’s post I want to answer the question posed and give some folks some OUTSIDE-THE-BOX thinking perspective. The question was this:
“Is it possible to build a home for $15k?”
The answer is this:
100% YES! And here’s how!
First you have to UNLEARN what you have learned.
Stop thinking in terms of money to BUY materials to build with. That’s the CONSUMERISM you’ve been conditioned to believe over the last 50 years.
Next, think about how the pioneers did it.
They didn’t have Home Depot and Lowe’s and Menard’s and Ace Hardware to go buy the building materials they needed to build their homes. They had to make due with what they had available and what they had available to them was knowledge, skill, labor and tools.
AND LAND! You need land with all the materials you need to build.
I’m not saying you need to build with hand tools either. I’m saying USE TECHNOLOGY we have today to make your life and your home a lot easier. If you want to build with hand tools, then build with hand tools, but don’t go round telling folks who use power tools and high technology that they’re “cheating”. That’s just ignorant and judgmental. Don’t do it in here.
Instead of buying the materials INVEST your money into the TWO THINGS you need the most.
LAND and TOOLS!
The trick in building a home for $15k is to invest some of that money into land that has all the materials you need to build your home yourself.
You can literally make your home as BIG as you want. You’re no longer limited by your budget for the materials you need to build with. You’re not longer limited to a certain size because that’s all you can afford because your labor and your ability will determine how big your home will be.
You can build as big or small as you want and the price of the materials and the home is your time and labor.
The larger the home the longer it will take to build and the more labor you will have to invest to build it. This kind of goes without saying. The main point here is that it’s your time and labor and skill that’s building your home. Not the money you spend on materials.
The materials come from the land you buy. Which is why it’s so vitally important to buy land with the materials you need to build the home of your off grid dreams.
Invest the bulk of your money into the land and the tools/equipment you need. You will still need to purchase some materials like wire, pipe, hardware, fixtures, etc.
And do you include solar and wind and battery backup too!? Yeah…that’s impossible, right? No. Not if you’re smart.
So here’s your budget and how to allocate the funds.
$15k BUDGET
$5k DOWN PAYMENT ON LAND or less; Invest in 5-20 acres of good land with trees, rock, gravel, clay and sand to provide you with the building materials. (also if you have all those things on the land, water is likely readily available as well, and kind of goes without saying) Land is going to be the single most important purchase you make. Be smart. Do your due diligence. You’re not just buying land, you’re buying all your materials and room to build and a place to live. Find a landowner willing to hold the mortgage with a small down payment. Don’t overspend or overextend yourself either. $5k is 20% down of a $20k property. You can get a fairly nice sized parcel of land for $20k. If you can swing it and are good at negotiation you can get land for 5% to 10% down…this means that $5k you have for a down payment is enough to secure a larger property…but just know if you do it will cost you more longer term and there will likely be a higher interest rate for a longer mortgage term. Weigh that against your off grid goals. Do you want the debt? If not…then $5k can still buy about 5 acres of land in very remote areas with timber but you’re going to have to really search hard for that land.
NOTE: You must research the zoning restrictions in the county/area, and the CC&Rs (Covenants, Conditions, and Restrictions) which will dictate what you can and cannot build on your land. Read them carefully and move on to another piece of land if it won’t allow you to build what you want. Now…it’s advisable to get a survey done BEFORE you sign a mortgage contract. Get title insurance, do a title search, protect yourself.
$5k Tools & Equipment – Invest in a portable sawmill and learn how to use it safely. Invest in all the power tools and hand tools you need. You can get a good used sawmill for about $2500 or so. Put the other $2500 into a chainsaw, table saw, chop saw, and various battery powered hand tools you’ll need. If you can squeeze it in, also invest in a small portable generator. You can pick a good one up for about $300 to $500.
$5k POWER & WATER SEPTIC AND PERMITS CLOSING COSTS ETC. – You’ll need power. You already have a generator in your budget (see above), so now you just need some solar panels and a battery pack. Invest no more than $2k in power for now. It’s enough to get you by and allow you some comforts while you build your cabin. Get a composting toilet for temporary use until you can get your septic system built out. (a note on septic; you need it. Eventually you will likely get tired of a composting toilet and a flush toilet will be needed. You’ll need a septic tank and drain field, this means a “perc” test. Most counties require a percolation test to test the drainage of the soil before building a drain field. This could run a couple thousand, so if you’re on a very limited budget then you need to think outside the box and use a composting toilet or a self-contained RV type blackwater tank that you can have pumped out every so often. Your gray-water is another issue. This is bath and sink water, laundry water, etc. Where will that go. This is where your due diligence comes in with your land research. You must know the ordinances of your county/area where you land is BEFORE buying the land.
You’re going to need power and water. This goes back to your land purchase in step 1. You will need septic. It’s a federal law. And you will need to pay for building permits. This also goes back to your due diligence and land research. You’re going to have a lot of fees. You can minimize those fees and some permits to pay for, but by doing your due diligence it will make your decisions much easier.
Once you do all of this…yes, you can build a cabin for $15k. Including the land purchase.
If you already have the land then you’re way ahead of the game and more money can be invested into tools and your power system. Electricity is vital for the civilized world. You’re going to need power and you’re going to need tools.
Invest the bulk of your budget into the land and tools. You will use the tools for as long as you live on the land. They will save you the money. Your labor will save you from 40% to 60% of the build price of a home by building your own home.
It will take longer. There is a big learning curve and it’s not for everyone. If you think it’s too much for you then get some help, ask and expert, and hire a professional…but that means having a larger budget.
Yes! You can absolutely build a log cabin for $15k! If you’re smart and you think creatively and do the work yourself.
Stay safe. Be smart. Do your due diligence and you can achieve your off grid dreams.
HAPPY OFF GRIDDING!
May all your off grid dreams come true!
***
This post is in response to one of our group members’ posts where they asked if it were possible to build a home for $15k.
We have the largest off grid group in the world with nearly 1 million members and would love if you joined. There are lots of awesome helpful and knowledgeable people in our group that share their knowledge and experience off grid to help people like you achieve their off grid dreams.